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Capcom cans international release of Monster Hunter Explore after 2 months of soft launch

Japan-only

Capcom cans international release of Monster Hunter Explore after 2 months of soft launch

Capcom is canning its action-RPG, Monster Hunter Explore, after soft-launching it in just one country.

Having first been released as a Japan-only title, the game was released in Canada in April 2016, and was expected to launch worldwide sometime after.

But, as reported by Pocket Gamer, a recent message pushed out to players reveals that the game's servers will be closed on July 31.

A learning experience

"Since launch, the team has done its best to provide our users with the most enjoyable playing experience possible," says the message.

"Player feedback is important to us, so with that in mind we've decided to shut down Monster Hunter Explore and apply these learnings to future projects."

The sale of Gems, the game's premium currency, will end on June 30, and Capcom encourage players to seek refunds for their gems if they were "not fully able to take advantage" of them.

Exploring new avenues?

It's currently unclear why exactly Capcom is cancelling the game.

According to the company's Q1 financial report for 2016, the game had surpassed 3 million downloads, which Capcom said at the time indicates "signs of a breakthrough in the current situation of the mobile contents segment."

However, as noted on the TouchArcade forums, the game hadn't been updated in Canada since launching, and so had numerous bugs and no new content for over two months.

The decision most likely came about as part of Capcom's consolidation of its mobile development teams, as it refocuses its efforts on its other licenses.


Editor

Ric is the Editor of PocketGamer.biz, having started out as a Staff Writer on the site back in 2015. He received an honourable mention in both the MCV and Develop 30 Under 30 lists in 2016 and refuses to let anyone forget about it.